A modern information handling system (IHS) may include a processor for processing, handling, communicating or otherwise manipulating information. These IHSs often include integrated circuits (ICs) that incorporate several components integrated together on a common semiconductor die. Some IHSs operate as test systems that evaluate the functionality and performance characteristics of other IC designs during the development process of the IC. A typical IC development process employs early design specifications that may include stringent requirements relating to the overall capability of the IC or other performance requirements. For example, a design requirement of a particular IC may demand that the IC operate without failure at a predetermined clock frequency. In another example, an IC design requirement may specify that a particular IC must execute standard benchmarking software to precise performance specifications.
With such rigorous requirements on IC design performance, designers often must develop extensive test strategies early in the IC development process. It is very common to apply these test strategies before the physical IC design hardware is complete. Designers develop computer or IC design models and test various parameters of the IC in a test simulation before actually fabricating the IC in hardware. The more detailed or accurate the IC design model for simulation, the more accurate the testing results become. However, more detailed IC models typically result in longer test application software execution times during testing.
Test strategies may involve extensive testing with large workload software application programs or test application software in a simulation environment. Test systems execute workload software application programs to benchmark or otherwise test parameters of the IC design, such as an IC design simulation model. Workload software application programs may include large numbers of instructions that often number in the trillions. Due to the large number of instructions in these workload software application programs, it may not be feasible to run or execute a workload software application program on an IC design model and still evaluate results in a timely manner. Hours of a typical workload software application program execution in a real world processor may correspond to months of execution time within a simulator.
What is needed is a testing methodology and apparatus that addresses the problems faced by IC designers as described above.